Indie's Best
by ShawnaOfTheDead | created - 25 Mar 2017 | updated - 06 Oct 2019 | PublicHighly recommended independent films
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1. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
PG-13 | 103 min | Drama
Charlie, a 15-year-old introvert, enters high school and is nervous about his new life. When he befriends his seniors, he learns to cope with his friend's suicide and his tumultuous past.
Director: Stephen Chbosky | Stars: Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, Paul Rudd
Votes: 547,451 | Gross: $17.74M
2. Heathers (1988)
R | 103 min | Comedy, Crime
At Westerburg High where cliques rule, jocks dominate and all the popular girls are named Heather, it's going to take a Veronica and mysterious new kid to give teen angst a body count.
Director: Michael Lehmann | Stars: Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Lisanne Falk
Votes: 115,685 | Gross: $1.11M
3. 500 Days of Summer (2009)
PG-13 | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
After being dumped by the girl he believes to be his soulmate, hopeless romantic Tom Hansen reflects on their relationship to try and figure out where things went wrong and how he can win her back.
Director: Marc Webb | Stars: Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Geoffrey Arend, Chloë Grace Moretz
Votes: 556,997 | Gross: $32.39M
4. Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010)
R | 89 min | Comedy, Horror
Affable hillbillies Tucker and Dale are on vacation at their dilapidated mountain cabin when they are mistaken for murderers by a group of preppy college students.
Director: Eli Craig | Stars: Tyler Labine, Alan Tudyk, Katrina Bowden, Jesse Moss
Votes: 193,339 | Gross: $0.22M
5. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
R | 101 min | Comedy, Drama
A family determined to get their young daughter into the finals of a beauty pageant take a cross-country trip in their VW bus.
Directors: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris | Stars: Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear, Abigail Breslin
Votes: 517,579 | Gross: $59.89M
6. Waitress (2007)
PG-13 | 108 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Jenna is a pregnant, unhappily married waitress in the deep south. She meets a newcomer to her town and falls into an unlikely relationship as a last attempt at happiness.
Director: Adrienne Shelly | Stars: Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Jeremy Sisto, Cheryl Hines
Votes: 48,802 | Gross: $19.07M
7. Once (I) (2007)
R | 86 min | Drama, Music, Romance
A modern-day musical about a busker and an immigrant and their eventful week in Dublin, as they write, rehearse and record songs that tell their love story.
Director: John Carney | Stars: Glen Hansard, Markéta Irglová, Hugh Walsh, Gerard Hendrick
Votes: 121,226 | Gross: $9.44M
8. Harold and Maude (1971)
PG | 91 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Young, rich, and obsessed with death, Harold finds himself changed forever when he meets lively septuagenarian Maude at a funeral.
Director: Hal Ashby | Stars: Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort, Vivian Pickles, Cyril Cusack
Votes: 81,790
9. Lars and the Real Girl (2007)
PG-13 | 106 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A delusional young man strikes up an unconventional relationship with a doll he finds on the Internet.
Director: Craig Gillespie | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Emily Mortimer, Paul Schneider, R.D. Reid
Votes: 155,240 | Gross: $5.97M
10. Bottle Rocket (1996)
R | 91 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
Three friends plan to pull off a simple robbery and go on the run.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Ned Dowd, Shea Fowler
Votes: 83,452 | Gross: $0.56M
11. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)
PG-13 | 92 min | Comedy, Romance
Guinevere Pettigrew, a middle-aged London governess, finds herself unfairly dismissed from her job. An attempt to gain new employment catapults her into the glamorous world and dizzying social whirl of an American actress and singer, Delysia Lafosse.
Director: Bharat Nalluri | Stars: Frances McDormand, Amy Adams, Ciarán Hinds, David Alexander
Votes: 29,721 | Gross: $12.29M
12. Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
PG-13 | 93 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Faced with both her hot-tempered father's fading health and melting ice-caps that flood her ramshackle bayou community and unleash ancient aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy must learn the ways of courage and love.
Director: Benh Zeitlin | Stars: Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry, Levy Easterly, Lowell Landes
Votes: 85,045 | Gross: $12.80M
13. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
PG-13 | 107 min | Adventure, Comedy, Crime
In the deep south during the 1930s, three escaped convicts search for hidden treasure while a relentless lawman pursues them.
Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | Stars: George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman
Votes: 330,530 | Gross: $45.51M
14. Frances Ha (2012)
R | 86 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A New York woman apprentices for a dance company and throws herself headlong into her dreams, even as the possibility of realizing them dwindles.
Director: Noah Baumbach | Stars: Greta Gerwig, Mickey Sumner, Adam Driver, Michael Zegen
Votes: 94,173 | Gross: $4.06M
15. Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)
R | 88 min | Comedy, Drama
An awkward seventh-grader struggles to cope with inattentive parents, snobbish class-mates, a smart older brother, an attractive younger sister and her own insecurities in suburban New Jersey.
Director: Todd Solondz | Stars: Heather Matarazzo, Christina Brucato, Victoria Davis, Christina Vidal
Votes: 37,126 | Gross: $4.77M
16. I Heart Huckabees (2004)
R | 107 min | Comedy
A husband-and-wife team play detective, but not in the traditional sense. Instead, the happy duo helps others solve their existential issues, the kind that keep you up at night, wondering what it all means.
Director: David O. Russell | Stars: Jason Schwartzman, Jude Law, Naomi Watts, Mark Wahlberg
Votes: 66,255 | Gross: $12.78M
17. Away We Go (2009)
R | 98 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A couple expecting their first child travels the U.S. seeking the perfect "family home." They have misadventures and find fresh connections with relatives and old friends who help them discover "home" on their own terms for the first time.
Director: Sam Mendes | Stars: John Krasinski, Maya Rudolph, Allison Janney, Carmen Ejogo
Votes: 55,058 | Gross: $9.45M
18. Frank (II) (2014)
R | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
Jon, a young wanna-be musician, discovers he's bitten off more than he can chew when he joins an eccentric pop band led by the mysterious and enigmatic Frank.
Director: Lenny Abrahamson | Stars: Michael Fassbender, Domhnall Gleeson, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Moira Brooker
Votes: 82,336 | Gross: $0.64M
19. Whip It (2009)
PG-13 | 111 min | Drama, Sport
In Bodeen, Texas, an indie-rock-loving misfit finds a way of dealing with small-town misery after discovering a roller-derby league in nearby Austin.
Director: Drew Barrymore | Stars: Elliot Page, Drew Barrymore, Kristen Wiig, Sarah Habel
Votes: 70,152 | Gross: $13.04M
20. Sing Street (2016)
PG-13 | 106 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A young lad notices a beautiful girl who begins to occupy his thoughts. While struggling with poverty, personal relationships and life's woes, he starts a band, hoping to catch her attention.
Director: John Carney | Stars: Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Aidan Gillen, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Jack Reynor
Votes: 100,842 | Gross: $3.24M
21. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)
R | 86 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Three magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified advertisement seeking a companion for time travel.
Director: Colin Trevorrow | Stars: Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson, Karan Soni
Votes: 130,813 | Gross: $4.01M
22. The Kings of Summer (2013)
R | 95 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Three teenage friends, in the ultimate act of independence, decide to spend their summer building a house in the woods and living off the land.
Director: Jordan Vogt-Roberts | Stars: Nick Robinson, Gabriel Basso, Moises Arias, Nick Offerman
Votes: 84,340 | Gross: $1.29M
23. Flipped (I) (2010)
PG | 90 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Two eighth-graders start to have feelings for each other despite being total opposites.
Director: Rob Reiner | Stars: Madeline Carroll, Callan McAuliffe, Rebecca De Mornay, Anthony Edwards
Votes: 97,369 | Gross: $1.75M
24. Kick-Ass (2010)
R | 117 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Dave Lizewski is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan who one day decides to become a superhero, even though he has no powers, training or meaningful reason to do so.
Director: Matthew Vaughn | Stars: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloë Grace Moretz, Garrett M. Brown
Votes: 592,866 | Gross: $48.07M
25. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)
PG-13 | 105 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
High schooler Greg, who spends most of his time making parodies of classic movies with his co-worker Earl, finds his outlook forever altered after befriending a classmate who has just been diagnosed with cancer.
Director: Alfonso Gomez-Rejon | Stars: Thomas Mann, RJ Cyler, Olivia Cooke, Nick Offerman
Votes: 138,190 | Gross: $6.74M
26. Ghost World (2001)
R | 111 min | Comedy, Drama
Two eccentric best friends graduate high school and respond to a man's romance-seeking newspaper ad as a gag, only to find their lives becoming increasingly complicated.
Director: Terry Zwigoff | Stars: Steve Buscemi, Thora Birch, Scarlett Johansson, Brad Renfro
Votes: 126,744 | Gross: $6.22M
27. The Station Agent (2003)
R | 89 min | Comedy, Drama
When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.
Director: Tom McCarthy | Stars: Peter Dinklage, Patricia Clarkson, Bobby Cannavale, Paul Benjamin
Votes: 73,320 | Gross: $5.74M
28. Morris from America (2016)
R | 91 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
The romantic and coming-of-age misadventures of a 13-year-old American living in Germany.
Director: Chad Hartigan | Stars: Markees Christmas, Craig Robinson, Carla Juri, Patrick Güldenberg
Votes: 5,629 | Gross: $0.09M
29. Chef (2014)
R | 114 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A head chef quits his restaurant job and buys a food truck in an effort to reclaim his creative promise, while piecing back together his estranged family.
Director: Jon Favreau | Stars: Jon Favreau, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Dustin Hoffman
Votes: 231,468 | Gross: $31.42M
30. Begin Again (II) (2013)
R | 104 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A chance encounter between a down-and-out music business executive, and a young singer songwriter new to Manhattan, turns into a promising collaboration between the two talents.
Director: John Carney | Stars: Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Adam Levine, Hailee Steinfeld
Votes: 166,788 | Gross: $16.17M
31. Ex Machina (2014)
R | 108 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
A young programmer is selected to participate in a ground-breaking experiment in synthetic intelligence by evaluating the human qualities of a highly advanced humanoid A.I.
Director: Alex Garland | Stars: Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac, Sonoya Mizuno
Votes: 587,695 | Gross: $25.44M
32. Election (1999)
R | 103 min | Comedy, Romance
A high school teacher meets his match in an over-achieving student politician.
Director: Alexander Payne | Stars: Matthew Broderick, Reese Witherspoon, Loren Nelson, Chris Klein
Votes: 104,407 | Gross: $14.88M
33. Waiting for Guffman (1996)
R | 84 min | Comedy
An aspiring director and the marginally talented amateur cast of a hokey small-town Missouri musical production go overboard when they learn that someone from Broadway will be in attendance.
Director: Christopher Guest | Stars: Christopher Guest, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey
Votes: 30,733 | Gross: $2.92M
34. Memento (2000)
R | 113 min | Mystery, Thriller
A man with short-term memory loss attempts to track down his wife's murderer.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, Mark Boone Junior
Votes: 1,321,557 | Gross: $25.54M
35. Junebug (2005)
R | 106 min | Comedy, Drama
A dealer in "outsider" art travels from Chicago to North Carolina to meet her new in-laws, challenging the equilibrium of this middle class Southern home.
Director: Phil Morrison | Stars: Embeth Davidtz, Alessandro Nivola, David Kuhn, Alicia Van Couvering
Votes: 23,424 | Gross: $2.68M
36. In America (2002)
PG-13 | 105 min | Drama
A family of Irish immigrants adjust to life on the mean streets of Hell's Kitchen while also grieving the death of a child.
Director: Jim Sheridan | Stars: Paddy Considine, Samantha Morton, Djimon Hounsou, Sarah Bolger
Votes: 44,262 | Gross: $15.54M
37. Amélie (2001)
R | 122 min | Comedy, Romance
Despite being caught in her imaginative world, Amelie, a young waitress, decides to help people find happiness. Her quest to spread joy leads her on a journey where she finds true love.
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet | Stars: Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, Rufus, Lorella Cravotta
Votes: 793,667 | Gross: $33.23M
38. Pride (I) (2014)
R | 119 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
U.K. gay activists work to help miners during their lengthy strike of the National Union of Mineworkers in the summer of 1984.
Director: Matthew Warchus | Stars: Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Dominic West, Paddy Considine
Votes: 61,556
39. St. Vincent (2014)
PG-13 | 102 min | Comedy, Drama
A young boy whose parents have just divorced finds an unlikely friend and mentor in the misanthropic, bawdy, hedonistic war veteran who lives next door.
Director: Theodore Melfi | Stars: Bill Murray, Melissa McCarthy, Naomi Watts, Jaeden Martell
Votes: 108,469 | Gross: $44.13M
40. Whale Rider (2002)
PG-13 | 101 min | Drama, Family
A contemporary story of love, rejection and triumph as a young Maori girl fights to fulfill a destiny her grandfather refuses to recognize.
Director: Niki Caro | Stars: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton, Cliff Curtis
Votes: 44,024 | Gross: $20.78M
41. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
R | 108 min | Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi
When their relationship turns sour, a couple undergoes a medical procedure to have each other erased from their memories forever.
Director: Michel Gondry | Stars: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Tom Wilkinson, Gerry Robert Byrne
Votes: 1,076,797 | Gross: $34.40M
42. Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
PG-13 | 101 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A national manhunt is ordered for a rebellious kid and his foster uncle who go missing in the wild New Zealand bush.
Director: Taika Waititi | Stars: Sam Neill, Julian Dennison, Rima Te Wiata, Rachel House
Votes: 141,702 | Gross: $5.20M
43. Captain Fantastic (2016)
R | 118 min | Comedy, Drama
In the forests of the Pacific Northwest, a father devoted to raising his six kids with a rigorous physical and intellectual education is forced to leave his paradise and enter the world, challenging his idea of what it means to be a parent.
Director: Matt Ross | Stars: Viggo Mortensen, George MacKay, Samantha Isler, Annalise Basso
Votes: 234,825 | Gross: $5.88M
44. Mistress America (2015)
R | 84 min | Comedy, Drama
A lonely college freshman's life is turned upside-down by her impetuous, adventurous stepsister-to-be.
Director: Noah Baumbach | Stars: Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke, Shana Dowdeswell, Shelby Rebecca Wong
Votes: 28,735 | Gross: $2.46M
45. Run Lola Run (1998)
R | 80 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
After a botched money delivery, Lola has 20 minutes to come up with 100,000 Deutschmarks.
Director: Tom Tykwer | Stars: Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreu, Herbert Knaup, Nina Petri
Votes: 206,828 | Gross: $7.27M
46. In a World... (2013)
R | 93 min | Comedy
An underachieving voice coach finds herself competing in the movie trailer voice-over profession against her arrogant father and his protégé.
Director: Lake Bell | Stars: Lake Bell, Fred Melamed, Michaela Watkins, Rob Corddry
Votes: 33,050 | Gross: $2.96M
47. The Discoverers (2012)
TV-14 | 104 min | Comedy
A road movie about a dysfunctional family who embark on a Lewis and Clark re-enactment trek and discover themselves and each other in the process.
Director: Justin Schwarz | Stars: Griffin Dunne, Madeleine Martin, Cara Buono, John C. McGinley
Votes: 572 | Gross: $0.05M
48. Splinterheads (2009)
R | 94 min | Comedy
When a traveling carnival comes to a small town, a lifelong slacker meets the girl of his dreams (Rachael Taylor) and wakes up to the life he has yet to begin living.
Director: Brant Sersen | Stars: Thomas Middleditch, Rachael Taylor, Christopher McDonald, Lea Thompson
Votes: 1,559 | Gross: $0.02M
49. Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006)
R | 88 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
A film set in a strange afterlife way station that has been reserved for people who have committed suicide.
Director: Goran Dukic | Stars: Patrick Fugit, Shea Whigham, Tom Waits, Will Arnett
Votes: 57,675 | Gross: $0.32M
50. Brigsby Bear (2017)
PG-13 | 97 min | Comedy, Drama
After being freed from his life in an underground bunker, a man sets out to make a movie of the only TV show he has ever known.
Director: Dave McCary | Stars: Kyle Mooney, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Matt Walsh, Michaela Watkins
Votes: 17,766 | Gross: $0.53M
51. Short Term 12 (2013)
R | 96 min | Drama
A 20-something supervising staff member of a residential treatment facility navigates the troubled waters of that world alongside her co-worker and longtime boyfriend.
Director: Destin Daniel Cretton | Stars: Brie Larson, Frantz Turner, John Gallagher Jr., Kaitlyn Dever
Votes: 91,761 | Gross: $1.01M
52. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)
R | 86 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Three magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified advertisement seeking a companion for time travel.
Director: Colin Trevorrow | Stars: Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson, Karan Soni
Votes: 130,813 | Gross: $4.01M
53. Mid90s (2018)
R | 85 min | Comedy, Drama
Follows Stevie, a thirteen-year-old in 1990s-era Los Angeles who spends his summer navigating between his troubled home life and a group of new friends that he meets at a Motor Avenue skate shop.
Director: Jonah Hill | Stars: Sunny Suljic, Katherine Waterston, Lucas Hedges, Na-kel Smith
Votes: 77,794 | Gross: $7.36M
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